Savage Times
by nikgjonbalaj
Summary: After the events of Zootopia, Jack Savage is instructed to investigate the Bellwether government corruption. When this super spy meets the dynamic duo behind the case itself - Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde - a team of three will discover an unsettling truth about the Night Howler case. Not only that, the two cops will find that Jack Savage is more than meets the eye.
1. Instructions

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

This story was given inspiration by Nathan Benavidez.

* * *

The screech of a metal pole.

The clickety-clack of mechanical keys to a computer keyboard.

Side chatter mixed in with coffee sips.

These were the noises Jack Savage heard every morning in his agency office under the Rufflection Pool at Woolington, D.C.

As he walked past the main room where hackers, communicators, and agents worked at their desks, Jack rubbed his eyes. The boss had wanted him in earlier than usual to talk about a special assignment. Other mammals might've been happy, getting a special job and possibly a raise, but Jack preferred dozing in his king sized bed to buying a Furrari.

Then again, he was one of the top agents in the country, so it was his duty to take on such dangerous missions. He often was congratulated on his work during hours, but it didn't mean much to him. He was good at doing what he did, and it paid good money. That's how capitalism was supposed to work, right?

Jack quickly grabbed a cup of coffee at the espresso machine, being sure to add 3 sugars, just how he liked it. He had gotten sick of the cliche "two or none" thing from the movies, and just decided that sweeter was better. His paws made slapping sounds as he strolled down the hall towards the briefing room.

The hinges swung smoothly open as he entered. Jack made a mental note to tell the janitor what a good job he was doing oiling all the doors. Agents 086, 583, and the head of the organization, Chief Det, a Tasmanian Devil with a stare that could make even the strongest lions make use of the lavatories, sat at the long, ellipsoidal table where assignments were handed out.

"Back your bags, Savage," the chief remarked. "You're going to Zootopia."

Jack could feel his annoyance building up inside of him.

"Why me? I'm one of the best agents here! You said so yourself! I've had a non-stop streak of successful cases for the past 3 months with no break! Summer's just around the corner, and you hinted at a vacation! And now I'm going to ZOOTOPIA?!"

The three mammals stared incredulously at Jack, then at one another. The rabbit realized how rude and unprofessional his outburst was only after it had happened. He meekly folded his arms in front of him.

"I'm sending you because you have a degree in political structure. This case is on the Bellwether corruption."

Jack was taken aback. The Bellwether administration? That was still big news (it was still May) and the two officers who cracked the case were basking in the glory of reuniting the two types of mammals in the city. "Besides," Det added, "it'll be good for you to get out of town. See the sights." The T. Devil smiled as he said this. Then gave Jack a stern look and practically yelled, "BUT DON'T BOTCH THE CASE." With that, the three animals streamed out of the room, leaving Jack Savage to ponder what it meant to finally see the legendary city of Zootopia.

* * *

The rabbit briskly walked towards the information desk in the lobby of the underground base. He had sweat on his hand, his brow - his suit was practically soiled. He had never left Woolington, D.C., and had never planned to. He had grown up knowing what his life was intended to, going to be. He would fight large scale crime with every fiber of his body, and he would be **happy** doing it. He would walk through the stage of life, reciting his lines with perfect pitch, eloquent diction, and general professionalism. What he had done this morning was the first time Jack Savage ever remembered stepping out of line.

The familiar face of Herbert the tiger secretary calmed Jack down.

"Whaddaya need today, Savage?" Herbert slyly implored.

"To be honest, I'm going to need your advice here."

The tiger's eyes widened. Jack Savage was supposed to be the pro, the guy you weren't supposed to pick a fight with. He respected you, and you respected him. He was kind, but rarely did anyone see him paying any sort of attention to social and emotional factors.

"Uh, sure, what's up?" Herbert shifted in his seat, clearly uncomfortable with the idea of actually giving Jack personal advice. The two had been closer than most around the office. They liked to joke around, something Jack almost never did with anyone else. They never met outside of work, never chatted over the phone or online, and never talked about their emotions together.

"Well, you see, I've got this case from the chief. It's got to do with the whole Zootopia scandal earlier this month. Thing is, I've never been out of town, and I'm not really sure what to pack, what to buy, or how to organize my trip. I've got to get the file, which is why I came here, but I was hoping you could help me."

Jack Savage was playing a risky game here. He was putting trust in the only sort of "friend" he had to go above and beyond anything they had ever done for one another. He could feel the sweat returning to his paws, even on his feet, and worried about how he would walk out of the room without slipping and making a fool out of himself. "Being the pro isn't as easy as it's cracked up to be," he thought to himself.

"Sure, I guess. Here's a list of what I usually bring with me." The tiger hurriedly scribbled out about 30 or so items on a spare piece of paper. "I'll email you the steps for going to the airport, getting to your hotel, and so on later."

"Thanks." The rabbit was a little worried about himself. He had somewhat broken down today. It had all started with his little venting session, but it had turned into something far worse. All of the loose strands of his life were unwinding; the braided rope was finally falling apart.

"Here's the case file. Oh, and chief wanted me to tell you who you'll be working with."

"Really? Who?"

"The officers who cracked the case, of course."

"What are their names?"

"Seriously? You don't know by now? It's everywhere in the news. The President gave them his congratulations."

"Well?!" Jack was a little annoyed by now.

"Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde."


	2. A Meeting Is Arranged

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

This story was given inspiration by Nathan Benavidez.

* * *

"Flight 117-3 to Zootopia, boarding now."

Jack Savage grabbed his small carry-on bag, sat up from the uncomfortable airport waiting seat, and made his way to the long line of mammals, eager to board their flight to Zootopia. It was a 3-hour trip, and it thankfully went North, which meant no jet lag.

Jack checked his phone. Herbert had sent him a text message.

"You boarding?" The digital question asked.

Herbert had been worrying about Jack since the day he'd been assigned to the case. He had sent him dozens of emails and texts, ranging from "Are you alright?" to "Don't forget your toothbrush. Rookie mistake." to "Pop quiz: where do you go after security?" Jack had been worried himself. His stomach was churning, butterflies mockingly slapping his insides. He started to feel sick, thinking about flying to a different city. What was happening to him? He was Jack Savage, infiltrator extraordinaire, the agent who had taken down one of the largest street gangs in the world (stationed at Woolington, D.C., of course), stopped the plan to assassinate the President, and created the ever famous (in the agency, at least) carrot dog. That had been a weird week.

Jack Savage lugged his baggage off of the rectangular conveyor belt with a steep gradient, making his way towards the exit. He had caught a few people saying, "Hey, that's Jack Savage." The rabbit felt as though he was being eaten from the inside. His torso was a rotting shell that had barely any time to spare before it collapsed. His past gave him the impression that it wasn't his; that his life had been a pile of bricks waiting to fall.

He found himself nearly at tears now, trying to keep his composure as a strong, confident bunny; it wasn't working. He wanted to be back in Woolington, D.C., the city he knew like the back of his paw.

Even that, however, wasn't enough for him. After mulling it over, he realized there was nowhere he preferred to be at the present. Nowhere on Earth could bring him satisfaction.

What was wrong with this Savage?

* * *

Jack awoke to a small alarm going off. His phone vibrated with a relatively idle attitude, reminding him that he had to be here for another day.

After his shower, he began to brush his teeth. The soft bristles on his teeth and the rhythm of the brush soothed his temper. He then put on his suit, grabbed his key and briefcase, and trotted out of his hotel room, at the very least motivated to get himself to the police station.

* * *

The bunny sipped coffee at the table. It was mostly quiet in the hall, and the gentle chatter filled the small mammal with joy. After a while, someone else sat on the opposite side. Their brilliant blue clothes spoke of professionalism, but their facial additions said otherwise.

"Nick, take off those stupid glasses," Judy Hopps spoke in a whimsically annoyed tone.

"Why? I thought you liked it when I wore my shades."

"They're cheap; your Aviators are so much better."

The fox had taken to messing with Judy's image of him; a polo, maybe a bow tie, even jeans (ugh, that day had been terrible). The first few days of Nick's time off from the Academy had been a blast. He and Judy had watched scary movies every night, sitting close together on the couch, munching on popcorn. Every time Judy started getting scared, she'd bury her face in Nick's tail, while he'd lazily say, "Oh, you bunnies, you're so emotional," and wrap his arm around her shoulders.

Nick's apartment had been repossessed in order to pay back his taxes. The judge had given him a pardon if he agreed to join the police force with no messy business in the background. Nick took the chance ecstatically, impatient for becoming a police officer. However, that meant that he had to sleep at Judy's apartment on the floor. He still had his 90-inch plasma, though, so the horror movies weren't a problem.

Judy's phone made a noise similar to Mr. Manchas's doorbell. She picked it up. Her eyes widened.

"What? What is it?" Nick asked. Judy's face displayed clear amazement, so the fox knew this was no time to joke around.

"Bogo wants us at the station. Someone's here to meet us."

"And that person is…?"

"Jack Savage."

Nick's face remained motionless. He had never heard of the name before.

"Who?"

"Jack Savage!" Judy yelled. "The bunny agent? You know, the guy who saved the President from an assassination?" Nick face just got more confused.

"I have no idea who he is."

"Fine, let's go downtown, and you'll see what I mean."

* * *

"Sit." The buffalo's tone expressed his keen order was to be taken completely seriously, with no argument whatsoever.

Jack Savage sat at a long, wooden table adjacent to the Chief's office. The smooth vinyl finish and air freshener brought the rabbit back to the days of his college applications. "They are to be taken very seriously, Jack," his father had always told him. Jack had been too scared to say otherwise. He would walk in, deliver the speech he had practiced in the bathroom more than 200 times, and walk out. He would receive his response later. The rabbit had already been pushed nearly to the breaking point by then, so he didn't have to go to many interviews before he was accepted to the best college in the Capital due to his prestigious resume.

"I've invited Officer Hopps and Mr. Wilde to come meet you now. The latter will be temporarily removed from his training to help you on your case."

"Wait, Mr. Wilde isn't an officer?" Jack was genuinely surprised.

"No, he was a witness and a helper to Hopps during the Night Howler case."

This was a little surprising. Jack had always assumed that the two had been partners from the outset of the case they solved. A suspicion started to grow, deep in the rabbit's gut, that this investigation might not be as simple as he thought.

"Huh. Alright, I'm ready to see them.

"Splendid. I―"

"Chief!" Jack could sense it was the secretary who had munched on a chocolate frosted jelly filled donut as he had walked in. The bunny's stomach made a loud rumble. He hadn't had breakfast, a large mistake on his part, and he knew he might not be able to make it through the day without some sort of sustenance.

"Wait right here, Agent Savage. I'll return in a few short moments."

Jack silently nodded his head. He could feel his head drooping at a mid-ranged angle, half looking at the Chief, half looking at the floor. His eyes were falling steadily, tempted by the warm breeze coming from the quiet fan across the room. The buffalo simply shrugged his shoulders and meandered around the many chairs, finally making it to the door. He let out a sigh, and with his enhanced hearing, he caught the Chief mumble, "I'm getting too old for this crap."

Savage unwillingly tried to keep himself awake, but his senses overpowered him. He could feel his heart rate slowly lower, as the room went black and his fur warmed the leather of his oh so comfortable chair.

* * *

"So, was this after or before the 1974 fake outbreak of Chika?" Nick was steadily starting to understand the timeline on Judy's phone.

"After," she responded. "That's why he was able to use the gold medal at the Oaklympics to reflect the high-powered beam on the subway."

"Gotcha. Okay, I'm ready to meet Agent Savage."

"You'd better be, you dumb fox, 'cause I don't want you to embarrass us in front of him."

Nick decided to play along. "Okay, tell me if this story sounds familiar. Obsessed little fangirl gets to a Gazelle concert and says, 'Hey, look at me, I'm gonna meet her backstage!' Only to find, whoopsy, being a fangirl is actually pretty awkward, especially for the nonchalant friend who just wants to hear some good music, like a **sane** person."

"Oh, shut up!" Judy gave Nick a playful punch in the arm as they walked through (or more like around) the revolving door. Clawhauser cheerfully greeted them.

"Hey, you two!" Chief Bogo emerged from behind the feline, maintaining his composure as his two favorite officers came into the station. Nick's people skills were undoubtedly key to his success as a police officer (in training), and also the reason he could tell Bogo was smiling on the inside as Judy and Nick made their way to the two cops.

"Good morning, Officer Hopps, Mr. Wilde." Even Judy felt uncomfortable at the sound of Nick being addressed as "Mister." It was an official greeting, so they couldn't blame Bogo for it, but seriously. Nick? Mister? Those two words should never be associated with each other.

"Agent Savage is in the correspondence room. You will be briefed on your cooperative mission there together." Bogo stated.

The two mammals jaws dropped, and their eyes opened. A case?

"What about my―"

"Your training will be temporarily on hold, Mr. Wilde. All other questions will be answered in Mr. Savage's presence."

Judy and Nick looked at each other, exchanging the same message: What is going on?

Chief Bogo's hooves clopped on the hard floor as the three mammals entered his office. Chief Bogo grabbed the door handle and turned around to face them.

"I expect you to be on your best behavior. No messing around, this is the federal government we're talking about. I'm looking at you, Wilde."

While the change in Chief Bogo's way of addressing him was refreshing, Nick held his paws up as if he were backing off innocently. With that, the door creaked open and the three walked into the room.

 _SSSSSSNNNNOOOOOORRRREEEEEEE!_


End file.
